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Opinion: How student journalists can expand their skills

Story and Editorial cartoon by Sydney Fredericks-Selby

Students interested in a career in journalism should have skills in radio and television in order to be a well rounded journalist. A variety of skills are important due to the level of competition it is to be a journalist.

The journalism program offers reporting, news production, advertising, media relations, and other forms of mass communication. It improves students critical thinking, reading and communication and thinking skills.

The radio and television program offers preparation for writing, editing, producing radio and television news. The program helps students focus on what content is suited to produce for their audience and what makes the content entertaining..

Both of these programs are involved in speaking to people in order to share content.

The radio and television program advises students to focus on what content is worth sharing and more appealing. The appealing content comes from the work that is being shown through either  video or sound. The transitions have to be clean and smooth without content that sounds or appears out of focus that will turn the audience away from continuing watching or listening.

This is the same strategic thinking that the journalism program likes to share with their students. The program likes focusing on what is important to its demographic whether it is news, opinion, sports, or art that is called citystyle.

If they fail at these tasks, then there will be no attraction to the content being produced. Many journalists want to be able to create a social impact to society.

These two programs are learning similar skills in video, photography, critical thinking and communication skills.

The journalism field is growing and changing because of technology and how accessible it is. There is podcasts for reporters to produce their own line of work and information that they have gained from doing research or experiences they would like to share. Reporters are broadcasting their work on a platform that is a similar demographic of people that are engaged with radio and television.

Both of the programs have the same goal that they want to share their content and for others to be engaged and take part in.

However, the journalism program is known to be a part of the English department and the radio and television is a part of the communications department.

At LBCC there is a newspaper called the Viking News that publishes every month based on news collected throughout the month and editors decide which work is appropriate to publish.

Newspapers are not read as often as the internet and the internet is continuing to grow with blogs, online publications, and news publications that have moved online.

The Viking News has a website that is updated daily that includes the videography, graphic design, illustrations, and photos.

Students in the journalism program should look more into the radio and television program to further expand their knowledge to continue to have to enhance their craft.

The ability to have skills in radio and television is important because of how competitive it is to be a journalist. One will succeed further if they develop multiple skills.

The majority of journalists are known to be freelancers and it is competitive for jobs because publications are looking for someone that is a professional and that is different from the rest.

A city college that urges students to participate in both journalism and radio television is Cerritos College. At Cerritos College they offer both of the programs that is known as Mass Communications.

Cerritos College offers Mass Communications which includes journalism and radio television. The Cerritos College offers a multimedia reporting and broadcast news production and editing class in their journalism courses that offers the techniques of using video, photos, audio, and animation through the internet.

Those who seek to work in journalism have to be well rounded and knowledgeable of all aspects in the field because it will help their craft and how to produce the best content. These skills will be able help a student gain an internship or employment in the media entertainment and news industry in.

The best way for a student to get involved and learn these skills is to take an extra class from either program. Another suggestion is a student attending a club that offers the extra enhancements that they are not learning in another class.

Once the student decides on what works best for them they can focus on one major whether it is journalism or radio and television. The student can list the skills they used from the class or club on resumes.

Participating in these programs would help the student decide on what they enjoy better too. They’ll know if they like being in front of a camera more and produce work live, through the internet or produce text for online publications.

It also gives students the opportunity to experience what other possibilities there are if they struggle in writing and do better on camera and speaking to a lens or  if they are better at taking photos or recording video. Then it will help students have multiple skills in their field and knowing what they want to pursue more.

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